Back to Birthday Cards!

Hello!  I've been gone for awhile, huh?  I got really wrapped up in my new job and preparing for Christmas the past few weeks.  Christmas was wonderful, and I think the saddest day of the year is December 26, since we have to wait another 364 days til the next Christmas!

And, since the holiday cardmaking season is over, I have gone back to creating birthday and other cards.  Here's a birthday card using Stampin' Up!'s new Sale-a-Bration set, Big Day.

I cased and tweaked this one from Elizabeth Price.  All products used are from Stampin' Up!

Hope you get some time to create today!  Thanks for stopping by, and Happy New Year!

Smiles,
Denise

There's no such thing as...

too much pie!  That's one of the stamps in this month's Paper Pumpkin kit by Stampin' Up!  It was so cute I had to use it for more than what they had you do with the kit...so I made cards for some of my favorite people!  Here's what I put together:

By the way, the message inside is "Holiday calories don't count!"  How I wish that were true!!

Enjoy your Thanksgiving!!

Denise

My Goal in Life

Yep, this sums it up:

Enough said!

Enjoy your weekend,
Denise

Just Because

Here's a sweet fall-themed card that can be used for just saying hello:

The pumpkin die is from Elizabeth Crafts, the leaves die is from Impression Obsession, and everything else is from Stampin' Up!

Thanks for visiting!  Hope you find some time to create today!

Best,
Denise

Create, November 2014 is On-line!

Hey everyone, the November issue of Create is ready for you to devour!

My Christmas layout is on page 201, my retro layout of me and Jeff in 1976 is on page 231, and this issue also introduces the 2015 Design Team!  That starts on page 145, with my intro and favorite layout on page 181.  Wow!!  So honored to be part of this fabulous creation!

Smiles,
Denise

Thankful {for the little things in life}

Hi!  This is just a quick post to share a colorful-appropriate card for this time of year:

Hope this inspires you to do a little crafting today!

Smiles,
Denise

Feliz Navidad

Now that Halloween is over, it's legit for me to post a Christmas card!!  This is the one I made for my daughter serving a mission in Monterrey, Mexico.  I have to mail it this week or she won't get it in time!  All products are from Stampin' Up!, except for the faux snow, which I discovered at Angela's Happy Stamper (it won't flake off once it's dry!!).

I cased and tweaked this card from Michele Reynolds.  Thanks, Michele!

Enjoy the day!
Denise

Eat, Drink and Be Scary!

Happy Halloween!

Here is a fun card I made for my friends for Halloween.  I got the idea from Justin Krieger.  The mask is made using the mustache framelit from Stampin' Up!

Have a really fun and safe day!

Denise

Baby!

Here's a sweet card to welcome a baby boy.  The "baby" stamp is by Stampin' Up! from way back in 2002, but it's such a classic, I've never gotten rid of it!

Thanks for stopping by!
Denise

Announcing...My Cards for Sale at Tiffany's Nail Salon!

Hello!  I am so excited to announce that my cards are now being sold at Tiffany's Nail Salon, located at 5643 Lee Highway, Arlington, VA 22207 (703) 532-0974.  I'm giving you the phone number in case you want to make an appointment (though they do accept walk-ins), because they treat you right there and do an awesome job on your nails!!

If you can, stop by to see!!

Smiles,
Denise

Halloween Street

Here is a pretty easy card to make for Halloween.  Just love Stampin' Up!'s Decorate Dots embossing folder that you see used in the background here.  Hope this helps inspire you to do a little creating for Halloween!

Thanks for stopping by,
Denise

Life is Wonderful

Hi!  Here is another card I made for my missionary daughter, serving in Mexico.  The English translation is "Life doesn't have to be perfect to be wonderful" - something I need to remind myself every day!

Have a great day,
Denise

Check Out My Cards for Sale!

After many years of hearing "you should sell your cards", I have finally decided to do it!  I'm starting with a selection of Christmas and Birthday cards, plus one Halloween card only available in October.  I've created new tabs at the top of my blog where you can find pictures of the cards and all the information you need to order.  I hope you will share the news of my endeavor with your friends and family.  Thank you so much for your support!!

Smiles,
Denise

Pearls & Diamonds

This card is an entry to the Pearls and Diamonds / September Stash challenge at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown.  It's not too hard to make and is nice and glittery!  All the products I used are from Stampin' Up!

Thanks for swinging by!
Best,
Denise

Too Soon for Halloween?

Well, according to the retail industry it's not!  Besides, when making cards, it's never too early to start!  So here is a card I made for my daughter who is serving a mission for our church in Mexico.  Down there, they have "Day of the Dead" instead of Halloween.  Either way!

The background papers are some scraps I had but everything else is from Stampin' Up!

Thanks for swinging by today!
Denise

He's the Apple of My Eye

Here's a two page digital layout I created from a sketch in Create magazine.  It's on pp 176-177 of the September issue!

Maybe you'll find some time to create something today!!

Have a good one,
Denise

I can see Mars from Here

A couple of months ago, I attended a Bruno Mars concert with my husband.  We had the most awesome seats.  I absolutely love Bruno Mars, so even the horrible concert traffic couldn't stop me from getting there!  He was fabulous (of course), and we had the best time.  I even spent $35 on a t-shirt!  Gasp!  Here's a digital scrapbook page I put together summarizing the show:

This will appear in the October edition of Create Magazine.

Thanks for stopping by!
Denise

Mr. & Mrs.

We have some friends getting married this month, so I put together the following for their special day:

All products are from Stampin' Up!, and I cased and tweaked the card from Natalie Kennedy.  Hope they like it!

Thanks for visiting,
Denise

All I Want for Christmas is....

Hello!  I made this card as part of the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown "pick a previous challenge".  I selected sketch #5 from May 2012, which looks like this:

And here's what I did:

To make the bow, I used a fork and followed this video.   It's tricky at first but you get the hang of it after doing a couple of them.  Everything but the decorative paper is from Stampin' Up!.  The decorate paper is some old Basic Grey stuff I had from a cool collection called Figgy Pudding.  Wish they were still making it!

Thanks for stopping by!
Denise

Paper Pumpkin Tweak

If you subscribe to Stampin' Up!'s Paper Pumpkin, you know you love it but sometimes you think you can use the contents in a different way.  That's what I did this past month -- I made all cards instead of some cards and some gift card holders.  Here's one of the cards I made with the papers from the kit:

Much more useful to me!

Hope you're inspired to think outside the Paper Pumpkin box!

Have a nice day,
Denise

Happy Birthday Wishes

Here is a sweet card that I cased from Sandy Mathis.  I love the layout -- I think it can be used over and over with completely different results.  All the products I used are from Stampin' Up!

Enjoy this wonderful, long weekend!
Denise

Sweet n Simple

Here's a card that is easy to make but very appealing to the eye, thanks to a couple of paper punches, one stamp, a piece of ribbon and this year's Sale-a-Bration  designer series paper, all from Stampin' Up!:

Thanks for visiting, and have a great day!

Smiles,
Denise

Happy Birthday, Sailor!

My husband's birthday was this past Wednesday, and since he lives and breathes sailing, making him a sailing card for it was a given.  For this card I used all Stampin' Up! products:

I'm loving the new Lost Lagoon color (the color used on the sailboats).  I'm also becoming more and more comfortable with the photopolymer stamps.  I've discovered the trick is to not press too hard on the ink pad with them.

Hope you have a super day and can find some time to create!

Best,
Denise

I Heart Snow

I know, I know, I hear it all the time.  But I love snow!  So when Stampin' Up! released this new snowflake card framelit, it went to the top of my "must have or die" list.  When it finally arrived, I couldn't wait to start playing with it.  Here's my first card with it, looking at it from the front:

And here is how it looks when you open it:

All supplies for this card are from Stampin' Up!  It also fit in nicely with this week's 52 Christmas Card Throwdown challenge, which is using your stash of glitter and bling.  I'm going to have a lot of fun with this card framelit!  It came with other framelits, too, such as the two snowflakes, the heart and the word "snow", among others.  It's great for Christmas and winter cards.

Thanks for stopping by today,
Denise

Got Mistletoe?

I've been wanting to use this stamp since last summer when it was released by Stampin' Up!, but I never got around to it til now, when 52 Card Christmas Throwdown posted their most recent challenge, "Mistletoe and Wine".  Perfect opportunity!  Here's my submission:

All products are from Stampin' Up! except the mistletoe embossing folder which is a retired product from Cuttlebug.

Thanks for visiting, and hope you're inspired to start your Christmas cards soon!

Smiles,
Denise

#birthdaysrock

There's a very special woman from my church who has a birthday coming up.  I wanted to make something unique to not only wish her happy birthday but to give her an idea of how much she is loved and appreciated.  Here's what I came up with:

And here is the front:

I used products from a lot of different companies, but mainly, the bench is a die from Karen Burniston of Elizabeth Crafts, the bike and coordinating die are from Hero Arts, and the airplane and banner dies are from Impression Obsession.  The "hello" and "#birthdaysrock" stamps, inks and papers are from Stampin' Up!, and I just don't remember who made the "good things" stamp! 

Thanks for stopping by, and hope you get time to craft today!

Smiles,
Denise

Calling All Heroes

My oldest daughter developed a love for super heroes while she was a tween.  She's since grown into a smart, lovely young woman, working on her own just outside of Tokyo!  She's developed other interests, but she still loves her super heroes!  When Stampin' Up! released the Calling All Heroes photo polymer set, I knew I had to get it and make stuff with it for her.  Here's my first project:

Kinda fun, huh?

Thanks for stopping by during your busy day.  Hope you find some time to create this weekend!
Best,
Denise

#ijustloveyou

Had some fun with the circle framelit flip-it by Stephanie Barnard.  The one I used is retired but she has a newer design for sale.  The rest of the products I used are from Stampin' Up!

Flip-its are kinda fun in that they're interactive cards but aren't very complicated to make.

Hope you find some time to craft today!  Thanks for stopping by,
Denise

Wanderlust

Here's another layout highlighting a castle we visited during our recent vacation to Germany.  You can also see it on page 183 in the July issue of Create, the fabulous, FREE, on-line magazine!

To download the magazine, click on the "share" link and some more links will pop up, and one of the options is to download.

Thanks for taking time out of your day to visit!  Hope you're inspired to do some creating today!

Smiles,
Denise

Sending You a Hug

Sometimes a stamp is so cute you just have to get it -- which is how I felt when I saw the "Duke" dog stamp from Rosie's Roadshow.  It's just a simple sketch but so adorable.  I did the following with it:

Perfect for my mom and my two daughters, all three of which don't live anywhere near me.

The card stock, ink and embossing folder is all from Stampin' Up!, and the message stamp is from Verses (a stamp company specializing in message stamps).

Thanks for stopping by!  Hope you're inspired to craft today!

Smiles,
Denise

So Sorry

Ugh, I wanted to let someone know how sorry I was for an event that happened last week.  I had already apologized, but I wanted her to know how much I meant it.  So I decided to make and send her the following:

All products used are from Stampin' Up!

What do you think...will it do the job?

Thanks for looking,
Denise

Deck the Halls

Time for another Christmas in July....I can almost feel the snowflakes on my cheeks!  At least, I wish I could as it's miserably hot and humid outside.

I made this card as a submission for a Christmas in July blog hop sponsored by 52 Christmas Card Throwdown.  There were four options to choose from, and I chose the Color challenge, which wanted mostly to see a lot of pinks:

The designer papers are from an old release by The Angel Company, and everything else is from Stampin' Up!, including the bow that I made using their Gift Bow die.

It's a great day to stay inside next to the closest air conditioning vent and craft!

Smiles,
Denise

Adorable Imp

Had some fun with these cute pictures of Julie from back in the day.  One day while vacationing at my parent's beach house in New Jersey, I took my kids down to the beach with my camera loaded with a roll of black and white film (yes, film!!).  At the time I wanted to hand-color the black and white photos.  This was long before Photoshop!  Years later, the b/w pictures were scanned so now I can do a little more with them.

I used a bunch of different companies' products for this:  Basic Grey Hang Ten, Skate Shoppe and Lily Kate, Cosmo Cricket Snorkel, Jessica Sprague Travel Log and I made the journaling strips.  This is entirely a digital layout

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great weekend!

Best,
Denise

"Everyone is a Star...

...and deserves to twinkle."  Do you know who said that?  I didn't either, but it was Marilyn Monroe!  I found a stamp made of that saying (by Verses stamp company) and had to get it.  Here's what I did with it:

I think it's a really sweet saying and plan on using it a lot.  All the other products I used on the card are from Stampin' Up!

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you've been inspired to do some of your own crafting today!

Smiles,
Denise

Banner Blast Birthday

Today I had the wonderful opportunity to stamp with some of my fellow Croppin' Queens!  Four glorious hours of uninterrupted stamping with the friendliest and funniest ladies in NOVA!  Here's one of the cards I made today:

I'm particularly happy with this card because I used Sahara Sand with Strawberry Slush, and it's the first card I've ever made with Sahara Sand!  I've had a hard time liking that color, but I think it looks good here.  Everything I used in this card is from Stampin' Up!

Thanks for visiting, and have a good week!

Smiles,
Denise

Christmas in July

Hi, what a wonderful long weekend we have this year!  Gorgeous weather and lazy days!  And I'm excited to be meeting with my stamping friends tomorrow afternoon to stamp!!  It's been way too long since I have been able to do that.

This month is when one typically hears about "Christmas in July", and since I never got around to posting my Christmas card from last year, I thought I'd do it now.  All products (except the trim at the top, which is Tim Holtz) are from Stampin' Up!

With a long weekend, you should be able to find time to create!

Thanks for checking in,
Denise

A Little Treat

One of the new products from Stampin' Up!'s 2014-2015 catalog is the uber cute hamburger box die (contributing to my Big Shot obsession that I wrote about yesterday!).  It was number one on my "had to have" list!  I was able to play with it this week, and here's what I did:

Are those not the cutest?!  Here's a view from above:

Of course you can put anything inside, but I put in a little bag of mini starbursts....yum!  I thought they would go with all the colors of the papers!  Speaking of the papers, I used some old stock (and coordinating flowers) I had of Konnichiwa from Basic Grey, but the stamps and twine are from Stampin' Up!  I can't wait to use these for Christmas gift boxes!  Oh, the possibilities...!

Have a great weekend,
Denise

Big Shot Obsession

Have I mentioned that I absolutely love cutting dies?  I'm almost to the point where I only buy stamp sets that have coordinating dies, and I rarely make a card anymore without using a die in some way.  My favorite tool is the Big Shot, a sturdy hand-cranked desktop contraption that enables one to take paper crafting far beyond the conventional approach that stamps, ribbon and punches previously provided.

In the following card, I used three different dies, an embosslit and a paper punch:

The Big Shot has taken my card creating to a whole new level.  I don't know how I ever made cards without it!!

All products, except the "hello there", are from Stampin' Up!  "Hello" is from WPlus9, which has a coordinating stamp set.


Have a great weekend...I'm sure you'll find some time to create during it!

Smiles,
Denise

I Lost my Heart in Heidelberg

Thank goodness for the new free, on- line magazine, Create by Scrapbook Generation!!  It focuses mainly on scrap booking, but also has card and tag ideas.  It is totally getting me out of the scrap booking rut I was in.  In each issue, they highlight a scrapbook company (this month it's Pink Paislee), and showcase a few sketches and all the different things you can do with one sketch.  They invite readers to make their own layout based on a sketch from that issue, and then submit it to their Reader's Gallery for a chance at publication.  This is the second time I was lucky enough to have the layout I submitted selected for print!  So exciting!!  Here it is (shown on page 217 in the June issue):

With all their fresh ideas, I've been happily scrapping my recent vacation to Germany! Why don't you try submitting one of your creations?

Magazine hint:  if you want to download it, click on the "share" button and an option for download will pop up.

Thanks for looking -- hope you get some create time in soon!
Best,
Denise

The 45 Record Card and Jacket

The other day, Deb Valder posted a card and envelope that look just like an old 45 record and jacket.  Immediately I knew I had to case it!  I have very fond memories of those days.  I even remember the first 45 I bought -- "Build Me Up, Buttercup" by the Foundations!  Anyone remember that one?

Anyway, here is my take on the 45 record card and jacket:

Is that not the cutest?  I'm going to give it to my brother, who listened to Casey Kasem every Sunday back in the 70's!  I want to make a bunch of these to have on hand for my friends who remember the days of the 45!

All the products I used are from Stampin' Up!, except the paper for the record jacket.  The stamp set is Blue Ribbon.  All the information on how to make it are on Deb's blog.

Here are some more views:

Thanks for stopping by, and hope you get some time to create today!

Smiles,
Denise